Sam Bennett throws one of the dirtiest knee-on-knee hits you'll see
The Islanders appear to have lost rookie forward Simon Holmstrom to injury last night. As Holmstrom was skating in the Florida zone with the puck, he was kneed by Sam Bennett. Holmstrom was moving at full speed when he moved to his backhand, he was slashed by Carter Verhaeghe and then Sam Bennett's knee hit the knee of Holmstrom who went down to the ice and he did not get up. Holmstrom left the game and did not return. It is likely that he will miss some time. Carter Verhaeghe was given a slashing penalty on the play. The injury occurred from the hit by Sam Bennett and no penalty was called on that. That could have easily been a five minute major penalty.
There really could have been two penalties on this play and Florida was lucky they only called the slashing part. Although it was hard to determine what the intent was, Bennett's play caused the injury . It is very possible that Bennett will hear from the league's Safety Department about this incident. He could face a fine or even a suspension.
Hockey moves at such a fast pace it is difficult to tell if Bennett was intentionally trying to knee Holmstrom or not. Even if Bennett did not have intent, kneeing another player can really hurt someone. Bennett needs to be accountable for his actions here and he should face some type of disciplinary action. The Islanders will have to continue to test their forward depth as Holmstrom will certainly miss some time. Hopefully it is not a long-term injury.
| POLL | ||
Should Bennett be suspended for this hit? | ||
| Yes, this is incredibly dirty | 52 | 76.5 % |
| No, it's not suspension worthy | 16 | 23.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
